Is Immortality the Best Employee Benefit?

An episode of The Jim Stroud Podcast

The Jim Stroud Podcast explores the discoveries and trends forming the future of our lives. Brain to brain communication, robot bosses, microchip implants for workers and immortality as an employee benefit are all happening now! If you want to know what's next, subscribe to this podcast and visitJimStroud.com to read the transcript and view related resources. If you want to show your appreciation for my podcast, please support my Starbucks habit with a small donation. | Donate at:ko-fi.com/jimstroud

Have you ever been fired from a job before? If so, I imagine it was during an awkward in-person meeting between you, your boss and somebody from the HR department. Today, however, we live in a different era and companies are using machines to fire employees. Don’t believe me? Tune in and I’ll share an example of what may be a sign of things to come. | Special thanks to ClickIQ for sponsoring this episode. (And a very special thanks to those who drop a little somethin'-somethin' in my virtual tip jar @ https://anchor.fm/jim-stroud/support)

There has been a lot of talk about diversity and inclusion as it pertains to the workplace. Do a search on duck duck go or some other search engine and you will no doubt discover countless articles about it. Yet, as I review several of the articles linked to from the search results, no one seems to be talking about a new demographic of workers that will no doubt disrupt the future world of work. What is the population I’m talking about? What is the one characteristic they all share? Well, in a word – transhumanism. Listen to this podcast to hear about future HR issues that will surely come. | Special thanks to ClickIQ for sponsoring this episode. (And a very special thanks to those who drop a little somethin'-somethin' in my virtual tip jar @ https://anchor.fm/jim-stroud/support)

Are you happy on your job? Are you unsatisfied with your work? Perhaps, you’ve already begun spending quality time on Indeed.com in search of new opportunities? And yet, you’ve kept all this to yourself, as you continue to plod along in a job you are starting to hate. What if I told you that with the help of big data and magic algorithms, companies are able to spot employees like you and with that knowledge, offer you a promotion, a raise or more fulfilling tasks, all in an effort to retain you as their employee. Sound crazy? Its not. IBM has software that can predict which workers are about to quit their jobs with 95% accuracy. Tune in to hear a very interesting podcast! Big thank you to our sponsor Click IQ. (http://clickiq.us)

When you think of prisoners working inside of a jail, what comes to mind? Prisoners cooking, mopping floors, folding clothes…? Yes, all of those are certainly true and now you can add one more – training artificial intelligence algorithms. In this episode, I talk about the pros and cons (pun intended) of prison labor. Big thanks to ClickIQ for sponsoring this episode.

Would you work for a machine? Some people are working for a machine right now, although they may not be aware of it. Could you be one of them? In this episode, I discuss humans and machines working together and its effect on the future of work. All courtesy of ClickIQ! Request a demo of their automated job advertising technology today! (Go to: https://www.clickiq.us/choose-your-demo/) And let them know you heard about them here first.

If you had a magic computer that could predict when crimes would take place, would you use it? Would you share it with the police so they could prevent people from becoming victims? Well, believe it or not, the police have such a system and have been exercising it to great effect. The technology and processes behind it is called "Predictive Policing" and it is a very controversial trend spreading across the USA. I discuss the good and the bad of it, in this episode. | Click here to support my Starbucks habit and financially support this podcast. / Read the transcript on JimStroud.com.

If you have a social media account or a cell phone or an internet connection, then you have no privacy. I’m pretty sure you can agree with me there. Do a search on Duck Duck Go or some other search engine for “Facebook scandal,” “cell phone privacy scandal,” or “data hacked” and you will no doubt agree with me. But have you ever considered your lack of privacy in the workplace? I’m going to share with you three stories and I want you to figure out whether or not they are true or false. Tune in to see if you can guess how far companies will go for the sake of efficiency. | If you have not already, subscribe to my blog at www.JimStroud.com.

There is a crisis of college student loan debt that is mind-blowing in its scope. Let me share some numbers with you: 44.7 million Americans have student loan debt representing $1.56 trillion owed to the government and of that HUGE amount of money, 11.5% of student loans are 90 days or more delinquent or in default. Add to these facts that students are still applying to US Universities with no sign of slowing down, at least according to the statistics portal – Statista. So, the cycle of student loan debt will continue or, will it? I happen to think that the future of student loan debt is no more long-term debt, thanks to "income sharing." Tune in to find out what I mean. | Transcript is available at www.JimStroud.com - Subscribe now!

The Fight for 15 is an American political movement advocating for the federal minimum wage to be raised to $15 per hour. The federal minimum wage was set at $7.25 per hour in 2009, and as of 2019 it has not been increased since. The movement has involved strikes by workers in child care, home healthcare, airport, gas station, convenience stores but most notably with fast food workers. What will happen if or when $15 is the minimum wage for all of the United States? I speculate the national and global consequences in this episode of The Jim Stroud podcast. | Transcript is available at www.JimStroud.com.

I break away from my typical podcast format to chat with Katrina Collier, Candidate Engagement Specialist, world-renowned speaker and my friend. As only we can, we discuss robots replacing recruiters, 4-day work weeks and cellphone addiction during a very sunny London day. Tune in to hear all the fun! Want more of Katrina Collier? (And who could blame you?) Find her at: www.thesearchologist.com

Did you know that when you shop, big brother is watching? Major retailers spend a lot of money on a lot of technology to attract your business and persuade you to spend more and more and more of your money. While that may not come as a surprise to you, the extent of how deeply retail technology tracks you may have you raising your eyebrows. In this episode, I share several case studies on how big data is being used to monitor your spending and persuade your buying habits. | Please support my Starbucks habit by dropping something in my virtual tip jar. (https://anchor.fm/jim-stroud/support) Thank you.

2018 was a banner year for data breaches and 2019 is already off to a great start. At the center of privacy scandals last year, was Facebook. It seemed like every other week there was a hacking issue or ethical misconduct around their user data. So, does this mean that Facebook users are on the decline? In a word, no. Despite all the data drama, Facebook is doing all right. So, what does it all mean for user privacy on Facebook and other tech companies with millions of users? I discuss that and something far more concerning than hackers stealing your data, predictive analytics. Tune in to find out what I mean. | For information on protecting your privacy on Facebook. (http://jimstroud.com/free) And please support my Starbucks habit (https://anchor.fm/jim-stroud/support) by dropping something in my virtual tip jar. Thank you.

Do you give money to the homeless people you meet on the street? I do, sometimes. But, mostly I don’t and that’s because I think it will be spent on some sort of vice and not on say… food or shelter. This is why I prefer to donate to a charity. If I give it to a charity, I can make a reasonable assumption that the money I donate will go to the intended purpose of getting someone the help they need. But what if there was a way to give funds directly to homeless people you encounter on the street with the guarantee that it would be spent responsibly? Well, I've found a very intriguing technical option that promises to do that very thing. Tune in to find out more. | Check out: 12 DuckDuckGo Search Tips You Should Know to Boost Productivity | And please support my Starbucks habit by dropping something in my virtual tip jar. Thank you.

What happens when politics is discussed in the workplace? A recent survey says that American workers are stressed out by any and all chatter about Donald Trump and politics in general. Despite that fact, with another presidential election on the horizon, there is no sign of that trend changing. So, what are you as a worker to do? Moreover, what can managers do (if anything) to curtail political discussions that can divide an office, much like the USA is these days? Tune in to hear my thoughts and strategies for how workers and managers can navigate these interesting times today and in the future. | Click here for information on protecting your privacy on Facebook. And please support my Starbucks habit by dropping something in my virtual tip jar. Thank you.

Would you ride in a self-driving car? Yeah, neither would I. As far as the public at large is concerned, they wouldn’t either. One 2018 survey cited only 21 percent of the public was willing to even try riding in an autonomous vehicle. I think that’s a BIG problem for a lot of startups and major companies who have already invested a lot of money into the technology. So, what can they do to convince the public to ride in them? Well, I have a few ideas. Tune in to hear them.
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I read the other day that chronic social media use is as bad as drug addiction and I remember thinking, "Is that true?" Well, I did a little bit of research and the answer is yes, a very disturbing yes. I discuss how bad the tech addiction epidemic is and share an unlikely method for stopping tech addiction in our time. The source of the improbable cure? Cocaine. Tune in for more details. This will be controversial, to say the least. | Plus: Go to JimStroud.com/free for information on how to protect your privacy on Facebook. And please support my Starbucks habit by dropping something in my virtual tip jar. Thank you.

Amazon reported that 100 million Alexa devices have been sold as of this writing. That’s great for Amazon but for you, maybe not so much. If you are concerned about your privacy then, its not good for you to have Alexa (and devices like it) in your home because it is almost always listening and recording everything going on. Doubt me? Tune in to this episode to learn why you should be concerned about Alexa and even more concerned about what Google has planned for your home. Its scary. | Click here for information on protecting your privacy on Facebook. | Subscribe now and/or leave a comment and let me know what you think of my show? Please and thank you. Finally, for more content like this (like the transcript to this podcast and other episodes), visit my website - JimStroud.com

The Christmas season is upon us which means, among other things, Santa Claus will be delivering toys and gifts to all the good little boys and girls around the world. Free gifts are one of the reasons why Christmas is so deeply appreciated by the masses. Can you imagine if Christmas was more than once a year? What if it once a month and all year round people were receiving free gifts in the mail; specifically, a check for $500. Sound nice? Well, its about to happen in Stockton, CA. The free gift is called “Universal Basic Income” and I think it’s a bad idea. Tune into my podcast to find out why. Want the transcript? Check it out at www.JimStroud.com.

A scientist named - He Jianku claims to have created the world’s first genetically edited babies. Shortly after the announcement was made, He Jianku disappeared to parts unknown. (Insert dramatic music here.) If what He claims is true, not only is this a major scientific breakthrough disrupting the scientific community - forever; its also a major headache for the HR department. Tune in to this episode to find out why.

{QUICK NOTE: I’m thinking of doing a podcast where I interview interesting people about the future of work, life and everything in between. Consider this to be the pilot episode. If I do more of these, it will be because of the comments and encouragement of my listeners. So, please do share your thoughts.}
My guest in the premiere episode of “Future Talk” (working title) is Dr. Tracey Wilen. We discuss the career confusion of mature workers and millennials seeking to progress in their career, how to figure out a career path in this constantly changing technological landscape, what to do when you don’t know what to do next in your career and more. Get a pad and pencil (or have you texting finger ready) to take notes as lots and lots and lots of strategies are suggested herein.

A Wisconsin company made it possible for their workers to throw away their employee ID cards, forget all their passwords, make copies and get food from a vending machine in a surprisingly convenient way. The magic solution? A small medical procedure actually – employees were given a choice to receive a tiny microchip under their skin. Its called “microchipping” and its a no-good, horrible and terrible idea. I explain why, in detail, in this episode. Listen in and be sure to subscribe, so you don’t miss an episode.

Attention Human Resources department, instead of spending so much time and money developing an onboarding program and/or a series of corporate training initiatives, why not simply plug your workers into a matrix-like system and have that information uploaded into their brains? Easy-peasy. Now, if you think that sounds crazy, even impossible, you will be intrigued by what I share in this episode. (wink-wink) And please check out the great special being offered to my listeners at http://jimstroud.com/secure )

What would happen if companies offered their employees immortality as an employee benefit? In this burgeoning age of digital afterlife services, such an offering is closer than you might imagine. If you have never heard of this new niche in the tech industry, prepared to be amazed when you tune into my latest episode. (Please check out this great special for my listeners! www.JimStroud.com/secure)

Identity theft is a global epidemic and its about to get worse because of proud, well-meaning parents. Find out what I mean in the latest episode of The Jim Stroud Podcast. (Please check out this great special for my listeners at www.jimstroud.com/secure)

What would happen if we crowd sourced morality? In other words, instead of a bible or a quran or a torah guiding us, we make life and death decisions based solely on the collective wisdom of the public. Let's take this a bit further, and plug the results of those whims into machines. What would happen then? Or rather, what's the worst that could happen? Tune in to find out! (And for research and resources related to this podcast, be sure to visit my website at www.JimStroud.com)

Earlier this year, something extraordinary was being reported in the news. For the first time in American history, there were more jobs than people out of work. To be specific, in June 2018, there were 6.7 million job openings but only just 6.4 million available workers to fill them; this according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Employers have been complaining for years about the inability to find workers with the right training for the positions available. In the meantime, companies are adding other incentives to retain workers and pull new ones in. As the demand grows, workers have gotten more confident about leaving their current positions for better ones. So, what is HR to do? One solution might be... Human Cloning! Tune in to find out why. Research and resources related to this resource can be found at JimStroud.com.

Believe it or not, scientists connected 3 human brains together and used that connection to… play Tetris, because… why not? This new technology represents a LOT of possibilities, both positive and negative. On the positive side, I can imagine paraplegics using this tech to mentally move prosthetic limbs. On the negative side, I foresee a HUGE problem for the HR department. Tune in to the first episode of my new podcast to see what I mean. Links related to this podcast can be found here: http://blog.jimstroud.com/2018/10/22/brain-to-brain-c…tion-its-a-thing/
ABOUT THE HOST
Over the past decade, Jim Stroud has built an expertise in sourcing and recruiting strategy, public speaking, lead generation, video production, podcasting, online research, competitive intelligence, online community management and training. He has consulted for such companies as Microsoft, Google, MCI, Siemens, Bernard Hodes Group and a host of startup companies. During his tenure with Randstad Sourceright, he alleviated the recruitment headaches of their clients worldwide as their Global Head of Sourcing and Recruiting Strategy. His resume and career highlights can be viewed on his website at www.JimStroud.com.